It's hard enough to pull off something like the upcoming Deep Relief benefit with months of planning, yet somehow, Deep Ellum's club owners and retailers have managed to do it in just a few weeks. We attended all of the planning meetings for Deep Relief, and it was impressive to see the entire community come together for the greater good, putting egos and bottom lines aside so they can raise a pile of cash for the people who need it most right now. And with the looks of it, they certainly will.
As we've mentioned several times before, a $10 wristband grants you access to all participating clubs (Club Clearview, Club Dada, Curtain Club, Galaxy Club, Gypsy Tea Room, The Kage, Liquid Lounge and Trees), and all of the proceeds go to charity. Benefiting from Deep Relief will be the Dallas chapter of the American Red Cross, as well as the national American Red Cross; police, firefighters and emergency workers in New York, Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania; national and local chapters of the Salvation Army; and the U.S. military and National Guard personnel.
The event kicks off at 7 p.m. with a family-oriented affair in the Club Clearview parking lot, featuring a performance by Little Jack Melody and His Young Turks, as well as a silent auction on Crowdus Street between Main and Elm. At 8:48 p.m., there will be a moment of silence, followed by a song by N'Dambi (see story) and a performance of the national anthem by LeAnn Rimes. After that, the clubs will open, and the lineups appear to have something for everyone. Galaxy Club has Primal Groove, Stepnik and Vibrosound. Trees will host a The Adventures of Jet-Spill-Winslow bill. The Kage will feature Udoka, Symptomatic, The Rien and 762. Jay Quinn Band, Ike Reilly and Astrogin perform at Gypsy Tea Room, and The Red Letters, Slow Roosevelt, Jibe, Big Iron, Waterhead and Outlet will play short sets at Curtain Club. Next door, the Liquid Lounge has Valve, Ruby Holiday and Disconnected in '73, while Club Clearview lined up Baboon, Red Animal War and Vibrolux, and possibly another band. Red Animal War will pull double duty, also performing at Club Dada with Clay and friends, Slick 57 and not common people. Dada will have a solo acoustic stage as well, with Elizabeth Wills, Courtney Fairchild and Tom Faulkner.
Trust us: You have absolutely no reason not to come down to Deep Ellum on October 12. If you find one, give someone 10 bucks to take down for you...
Lucy Loves Schroeder and 41 Gorgeous Blocks celebrated the release of their new records with a shindig last Thursday at Club Clearview, in case you missed it. Lucy's disc, Lucy Is a Band, was recorded by the pAper chAse's John Congleton and is out on Beatville Records, the Washington, D.C-based label that is also home to fine albums by [DARYL], the pAper chAse and Kid Chaos. With Congleton behind the controls, it's more than just standard-issue pop-punk, though it's more than that anyway. 41 Gorgeous Blocks' effort, It Isn't Supposed to Be This Way (released by Denton's She's Gone Records), was recorded in Arlington at Deedle's Room, the studio owned and operated by guitarist Deedle LaCour. Following last year's An Emotional Young Person Just Like Yourself, the album finds the band making the transition from the previous disc's pop-punk to a new power-pop sound that proves just how good the songs were in the first place. But don't just take our word for it...
Speaking of the pAper chAse, John Congleton reports the group has begun pre-production on its next album, Hide the Kitchen Knives, though it's been slow going since he's been busy in the studio with other bands. He hopes the disc will be out early next year, making it only one of several recordings featuring Congleton that you should be able to find in stores at some point next year. Among other things, Congleton has an untitled solo album (more of a side project, really) in the works, due out on Beatville; he describes the sound as "the pAper chAse without the 'rock.'" OK...
Aside from participating in the Deep Relief benefit, The Adventures of Jet will also perform at Club Clearview the night before, with Armstrong and The Vue. Expect to see a different lineup than the one you saw last time the boys were onstage. (When was that--December?) Longtime bassist Tony Janotta has moved over to guitar, the instrument he played before joining Bobgoblin in 1994, which turned into The Commercials, which turned into The Adventures of Jet. Taking over on bass is Omar, whom you may have seen playing with various incarnations of Darlington and, if we remember correctly, PEN 15. Janotta has been recording both guitar and bass tracks for AOJ's forthcoming album, which is currently nearing its final stages at Barry Poynter's studio, Poynter's Palace, in Little Rock. If you want a taste, head to www.mp3.com/adventuresofjet. Or just come out and hear it for yourself...
For the first time since the summer of 1994, Mark Griffin will step back onstage under the MC 900 Ft. Jesus banner, playing October 18 at Mercury in Austin, October 19 at Trees and October 20 at Dan's Bar in Denton. Griffin has rounded up some impressive sidemen to back him up. Earl Harvin will mind the tubs, joined by keys player Dave Palmer, saxophonist Chris McGuire, bassist Dave Monsey and guitarist Phil Bush. Outside of an Earl Harvin Trio show, you're unlikely to find that much talent assembled on one stage.
